Grassley Tries To Whitewash Hateful Opposition To NY Mosque: No One Is Saying There Is ‘Any Ill Intent’

In their attempt to stop the construction of an Islamic center near Ground Zero in New York City, right-wing opponents of the mosque have voraciously attacked the motives of Feisal Abdul Rauf, the imam behind the project, demonizing him as a radical and a terrorist sympathizer.

But in an interview with the editorial board of the Sioux City Journal, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) — who supports moving the mosque to a new location — attempted to ignore the ugly attacks against Rauf and his supporters, saying none of the mosque’s critics have suggested there is “any ill intent” behind the proposed center:

Said Grassley: “I doubt there was any ill intent by Muslims in wanting to place that there. I don’t have any evidence, I don’t think any of the critics have said there was any ill intent, and constitutionally you can’t question their right to do it. But I hope, on second thought — and we also sometimes have to have second thoughts about initial decisions, even well-thought-out initial decisions — that it is insensitive and unwise to do it.”

In fact, the right-wing echo chamber has done little else but smear Rauf and question his “intent” in recent days. In a campaign ad, New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio warned, “Now a terrorist-sympathizing imam wants to build a $100 million mosque near Ground Zero. Where is this money coming from? Who’s really behind it?” Fox News host Bill O’Reilly said Rauf “is no friend to America,” because his “radical” views are “very disturbing.” Fellow Fox host Glenn Beck falsely claimed Rauf is “connected to” Hamas, and that Rauf employs an antisemitic imam.